Akhud
The Akhud clan called themselves Ahranites. Clan Akhud were a group of powerful and influential vampires, fiercely loyal to each other, who seek to create a new vampire order, with themselves on top. They share the lust for power of Clan Ventrue, the secrecy of Clan Mekhet, and the inherent distrust from their brethren that Clan Nosferatu suffer from. History The members of Clan Akhud — are descended from the sons of the last king of Gomorrah, one of two cities (the other being Sodom) destroyed by God in the Old Testament. According to the story, it was a mysterious stranger who came to the city of Gomorrah, enticed the king, turned him against his sons, and tempted the old king and his people to sin grievously. It was these sins that brought the wrath of God down upon the city. The three sons watched their city burned to the ground with fire and brimstone, and vowed to find the stranger and punish him for leading their father astray. After centuries of searching, the sons discovered this stranger was a vampire through their contact with the old Camarilla in Rome. They also found that before leaving, the stranger had passed his curse on to the king and his sons. Rome At the time, the other clans had a deal going on with the the Striges, wherein they would sacrifice blood and would constantly excavate new tunnels in the earth. According to Aulus Julius, the Striges were also now demanding a tithe of mortal relatives of the Propinqui. This was a horror beyond imagining, as not only were they not allowed to see their descendants rest and perform horrific acts, but also remain unburned. After debate and discussion, Julius declared that no Kindred would have to follow the ancient compact, given the cost. One clan held firm and said they had made a compact which must be observed, no matter how dear the price. Julius remarked that accepting indignity was un-Roman and weak. Claiming this clan were slaves of the Striges and practitioners of witchcraft, the other Propinqui fell upon them and destroyed them. Julius ordered their name struck from all records. In time, with the Fog of Eternity, bad memory, torpor, and the ban on mentioning their name, all memory of the clan's true name faded. They are simply referred to as the Traditores, the Traitors. A demon named Shaddad was summoned by one of the remaining members in a moment of desperation, and told the sons that if they could eliminate all others like them, when they were the only ones left a new Gomorrah would be granted to them. Modern Nights The history has become muddled, with Gomorrah being only one of five cities giving rise to the clan, and being responsible for the fall of both it and Sodom. There are some who claim that survivors of the Akhud — the seventh clan — are the mysterious vampires known to modern Kindred as VII, trying to resurrect their lost city. Given VII's connection to the Strix, it's possible the demon Shaddad may be one of them. Clan Weakness The Akhud suffer the Curse of Five; their clan bane renders them unable to knowingly harm or betray other members of their clan. This protection also applies to mortal descendants, or anyone with a blood bond to an Akhud vampire. In First Edition Requiem, in addition to the above, the Akhud are tormented by the whispers of the demon Shaddad, represented mechanically by a small penalty to derangement rolls, as well as a penalty to resist frenzy in any scene in which they speak, write, hear or read the name Shaddad. Furthermore, they are not affected by the Taint of the Predator and are able to sense other vampires through it. As a side effect, Akhud are protected against mind reading. Their Clan disciplines are Celerity, Obfuscate, and the unique discipline of Praestantia. Additionally, many learn Ahranite Sorcery. Symbol The symbol is an old Gomorrahan symbol left by the Ahranites, painted on the sides of buildings in Rome as a warning to the kindred, reading "As the ground swallowed the city of pillars, so shall we devour you." This symbol contains the roman numeral "VII" within its markings. Background Information * Will Hindmarch included the Traditores intentionally as a nod to VII (given the Roman numeral). Counting the main five clans of the period, plus the Ventrue, the Traditores make seven clans. As such, they may be the Akhud.RPGnet post Sources * * * * VTR 2e: Thousand Years of Night Category:Vampire: The Requiem glossary Category:VTR: Clans